Lara Iskandar

Lara Scandar (Arabic: لارا إسكندر; born 18 December 1990) is an Egyptian-Lebanese singer and songwriter who rose to fame in 2009 after participating in the Pan Arab talent show, Star Academy. Scandar was born on December 18, 1990, in Santa Monica, California to an Egyptian-Italian father and a Lebanese mother. Lara comes from a Christian family. Her family moved back to Cairo, Egypt right after her birth. Scandar grew up in a music-loving family where both her father and grandfather enjoyed singing as a hobby. She and her sister Tamara were always encouraged to perform in school plays and musicals as well as out-of-school activities. Scandar’s parents enrolled her in ballet classes at the age of 4, which she continued to study until the age of 15. At age 6, she began modeling in catwalks for kids’ clothing brands as well as TV and print ads. She continued to model until the age of 17, right before her admission to Star Academy. After graduating from high school, Scandar auditioned for Star Academy, a Pan-Arab talent show based in Lebanon that brings together young talents from all over the Arab world who have to live together and compete for the "Star" title. She was one of three Egyptians chosen to represent her country on the sixth season of the show, which debuted in February 2009. Scandar stood out by singing in several languages (English, French, Spanish, and Italian). She was the last Egyptian remaining in the competition and reached the semi-finals. After Scandar's popularity in Star Academy 6, award-winning Lebanese producer and composer Jean-Marie Riachi approached her, and they have worked together since then. She released her first single "Mission Is You" on February 3, 2010, for which she won the MEMA (Middle East Music Award) for the Encouragement Award given to rising artists with evident potential to succeed. Her second and third singles followed within the next year. In 2011, it was announced that Scandar had been chosen to be the face of Herbal Essences Arabia. She wrote her third single, "See The Beauty", specifically for the brand’s advertising campaign. In 2012, Scandar released her first studio album About A Girl, which included three songs written by her, one Arabic track, a dance cover of Toto Cutugno’s "L'Italiano" and six other tracks.